"The Lego Batman Movie" Review

Title: The Lego Batman Movie

Directed by: Chris McKay

Written by: Seth Grahame-Smith, Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Jared Stern, and John                                        Whittington

Year: 2017


The Lego Movie from 2014 is one of the most surprising films I have ever seen. I thought the picture was going to be an incomprehensible mess and a cash-grab more than anything else. But the movie turned out to be a highly enjoyable comedy-adventure, backed with a great script and wonderful animation. So this time around, I was looking forward to The Lego Batman Movie. However, we have seen the atrocity that happens when you take a side character and give them their own movie (looking at you Minions). Does this continue on the strong building blocks laid out by the first film, or does it fail to click together?

After his evil plans were thwarted by the Batman once again, the Joker is dead-set on proving to the Caped Crusader that he is the hero's greatest villain. Meanwhile, Batman must come to terms with the fact that he is alone in the world and perhaps he is not as happy as he seems.

Will Arnett reprises his role as Batman from The Lego Movie and he is exceptional. This take on the Batman character embraces all the jokes and exaggerations that have surrounded him for the past few years, including his persistence at being alone and his self-absorbed personality. Arnett highlights these characteristics terrifically. Although Arnett's voice work is great, I am not a fan of the interpretation as a whole. I find this iteration consistently entertaining, but some bits about it, such as his love for beat-boxing, are a little too far-fetched for my liking. But if you liked Batman in The Lego Movie, then you will surely love him here.

Zach Galifinakis is surprisingly good as the Joker. This version of the character is more in line with the one from the early Detective Comics issues, albeit with a more modern sense of humor. Galifinakis' voice perfectly matches the character and was an unexpected high point for me. I actually think Galifinakis' Joker is better than Jared Leto's from Suicide Squad. But I found the standout character to be Robin, voiced by Michael Cera. They have made this Robin so adorably charming and an effective foil to the respective Batman. Cera's soft vocals, coupled with the character's general excitement and optimism, fuse wonderfully to produce an enticing and delightful incarnation of the Boy Wonder.

Rosario Dawson plays Barbara Gordon, and she turns out a good performance. Her banter with Arnett's Batman is frequently comical and Dawson manages to give Barbara a unique identity. Rounding out the main cast is Ralph Fiennes as Alfred, Batman's butler. His voice is remarkably suitable for the character, making the deadpan humor all the better. I still would have preferred to see Fiennes as Alfred in a live-action movie, but this will have to do. Overall, this is a solid cast and it sounds as if everyone is invested in the material and having a blast recording the dialogue.

The story itself is comedic in concept, yet it falls in line with Batman lore. The Joker is trying to convince Batman that he is his greatest adversary. This seems like a plot that would pop up in Batman: The Animated Series. This portion of the story allows the Joker to meet various characters that are more than happy to help him take over Gotham City. This half of the story is consistently engaging and offers some great side characters. I will not spoil who they are, but I will say that you should brush up on your cinematic (and television) classics.

The other half of the story, which focuses on Batman, is also good. Batman is at odds with the newly appointed commissioner, Barbara Gordon. Her methods conflict with Batman's, which causes a great deal of tension between the two. In addition, Bruce Wayne has mistakenly adopted Dick Grayson and Alfred is forcing him to spend time with the young lad. This side of the plot has Batman wrestling with his loneliness and constantly wanting to work alone. The theme stressed here is the importance of family, which is ironically fitting. It is a good message and it culminates well in the end, but I did take issue with some of the execution.

The idea of Batman being a loner has been a present concept within his most recent iterations. As such, it is bold to make the moral of this story about family, which, oddly enough, takes the character back to his roots. However, the film does beat you over the head with this virtue throughout the picture. There is a lack of subtlety, as everything is told directly to the audience. For instance, there is a moment that harkens back to a photograph presented very early in the film. The connection is clear and effective, but then the film cuts to the photograph we saw earlier to further cement the link. This type of hand-holding discredits the audience. I understand that the main demographic for this movie is children, but I would give them more credit. And if they do not comprehend it the first time, then they will certainly find something new about the picture when watching it at an older age.

If you enjoyed the style of comedy that permeated The Lego Movie, then you will feel right at home here. Much like the first film, the jokes are flying a mile a minute, and most of them stick the landing. The Lego Batman Movie will keep a grin on your face for the majority of its runtime. The film is very self-aware and knows exactly what it wants to be. The best way I can describe it is that it is a child-friendly version of Deadpool. On that note, the best jokes are when the film pokes fun at Batman's cinematic history. Viewers who are familiar with Batman's various appearances in movies will get the most out of the humor, as the film rewards the loyal fans. This movie references the shark repellent from Adam West's feature in 1966; that is how in-depth these callbacks are.

Unfortunately, the rapid humor is not balanced perfectly with the slower, more emotional moments. The Lego Movie did this very well, but in this latest installment, the pacing can slow down significantly. It also does not help that these slow moments are when the film chooses to hammer in its message with little grace. As such, the pacing as a whole is uneven and could have been bettered with a little bit more time in the editing room.

The animation is, once again, top notch. This franchise has developed a style all its own, using computer generated visuals to simulate stop motion animation. This technique adds a breath of originality to the animation genre and allows these movies to stand out. The action is especially impressive. The fight sequences and major battles are exhilarating, with so much detail thrown at the screen yet easily detectible to the eye. The film is littered with vibrant colors and polished models that are very appealing. In addition, the countless facial expressions employed with the characters is astounding.

The Lego Batman Movie serves as ideal, escapist fun. The voice cast is terrific; the plot is engrossing and strangely fitting; there is a good moral that is expressed; and the animation remains of the highest quality. The film tends to batter the audience with its message and the pacing suffers as a result (particularly when contrasted with the quick humor). Also, your enjoyment of this picture will depend on how much you liked Batman from The Lego Movie. Though I found him to be a good character, he was hardly my favorite, and there were times in this film where I thought he was a tad obnoxious. But The Lego Batman Movie makes for a good watch, no matter your age group. The flick is frequently hysterical and the numerous jokes about the Batman mythos are too good to pass up. If you are looking for a wholesome, fun time at the cinema, then this is the film for you.

Grade: B+